After the nightmare
by katie1999
Summary: This takes place after the episode "Armed and Dangerous" where Victoria was taken hostage by two bandits in the prison who threatened to kill her if their demands were not met. After Victoria was freed by Zorro, she has to cope with the events. In desperate need for a shoulder to cry on, she chooses 'safe' Diego.


**After the nightmare**

_Disclaimer: This story was written solely for the enjoyment of other Zorro fans and is not intended to infringe on any copyrights held by Goodman/Rosen Productions, New World Television, Zorro Productions, the estate of Johnston McCulley or anyone else._

This is a follow-up story to the episode "Armed and Dangerous" in Season 3, AU version. Victoria is held hostage by two bandits in the prison. To keep Victoria safe, Mendoza agrees to give in to their demands to get weapons, horses and 10000 pesos. Diego tricks them with unloaded weapons, trained horses and a safe that he has emptied as Zorro. In the end it's easy for Zorro to free Victoria out of the hands of the bandits who threatened to kill her.

**Chapter 1**

In the night there was a slight knock at the window of Victoria's bedchamber and a few minutes later a black clad figure climbed through the window.

Victoria hadn't gone to bed yet. She was still sitting at her dressing table, trying to cope with the events of the day. Zorro had brought two dangerous bandits to prison and later, when Victoria had wanted to bail out a farmer, they had taken her hostage. Holding a sword to her throat, they had threatened to kill her if their demands for money, horses and guns weren't fulfilled.

Though the de la Vegas had provided everything, the two men had still forced her to go with them. With horror she remembered the hours she had been their hostage, and if hadn't been for Zorro to come to her rescue, she wouldn't have survived the day and would have ended up with a slit throat. But that wouldn't have been the worst.

"Victoria," Zorro smiled at her, "I wanted to see how you are! I know it has been a terrible day for you."

Zorro opened his arms, expecting her to leap into his embrace as usual, but she only stared at him.

"Please go, Zorro," she turned away from him, wrapping her shawl closer around her.

"What's wrong, Querida?" he asked, concerned. "Did I do something wrong?"

She bent her head, trying to hide her tears. "No, it's not your fault, Zorro. Please, I need to be alone!"

Gently, he put his hand on her arm, trying to make her turn around, but she shook off his hand with a flick of her arm. "Please!" she cried, as her body shook with tears.

"Talk to me, Querida," he pleaded, but she only shook her head, refusing to face him.

"I'll be there if you need me, Querida," he gave up, concerned. Victoria didn't look up, as he climbed out the window.

Z Z Z

The next morning Diego got up early after a sleepless night. Victoria's behavior last night had him very concerned, and he needed to find out what was wrong with her. If she didn't talk to Zorro, she might confide in her friend Diego.

"Diego, you're up early," Victoria greeted him, surprised, as he entered the empty tavern.

"I couldn't sleep, and I thought I'd have a coffee with you," he explained, as he eyed her critically. Victoria looked tired as if she hadn't slept at all. And there was something else that was different about her today. Despite the warm temperatures on this spring morning, Victoria was wearing a long sleeved blouse that he hadn't seen her wearing before. It covered her up to the neck without any cleavage.

"I'll have it ready for you in a minute, Diego," she said, distracted, without really looking at him as she turned around to vanish in the kitchen.

"Is something wrong?" Diego had followed her, finding her standing motionless in the kitchen center with her back to the curtain.

Victoria turned around at his words, looking at him for the first time this morning. Diego was simply standing there, and all she could see in his eyes was his concern for her. In her desperate need for someone to comfort her, she threw herself into the arms of the person she trusted the most.

Victoria had never thought that a caballero shirt with its many ruffles could be so comforting as she soaked it with her tears.

"It's alright, Victoria. Tell me, what's wrong!" Diego comforted her, holding her in his arms.

As she continued to cry, she related what had happened during the time she was held hostage by the bandits. While she had been alone with them, the men had slapped and harassed her, forcing kisses on her, touching her boldly. Fortunately for her, they had been constantly interrupted by Mendoza who had tried not to give in to their demands and with his constant new suggestions had drawn their attention away from her. If they had been undisturbed, they would have raped her in the prison. But the men had assured her that she wouldn't escape her fate when they forced her to accompany them.

Shocked, Diego listened to her report, not knowing how to handle it.

"Victoria, is there something I can do for you?"

"Can you just hold me, please?" she pleaded, clinging to his shirt.

"Why didn't you say something yesterday?" he asked, stunned, holding her tight.

Victoria shook her head. "I couldn't. It was so bad. I thought if I didn't say anything I could forget it and the memories would go away. But, I can't stop thinking about it." Her body shook again from her sobbing. "And Zorro came to me last night, too, to check on me. I sent him away."

"Did he do something wrong?" Diego had puzzled all night about her reasons for sending him away. "He saved you from the bandits!"

She shook her head again. "No. It wasn't him. It was me. He wanted to hold and kiss me, but I couldn't have him touch me. Not after _they_ touched me and forced _their_ kisses on me. I don't want anyone to touch me!" she declared.

"Is that why you're wearing this shirt?"

She nodded into his chest. "I don't want anyone's hands on me or touch my skin."

"But, you're letting me hold you?" Diego was confused.

Victoria raised her head to look at him. "I know I can trust you," she whispered. "You've always been like a brother to me, and you never tried to take advantage of me or kiss me."

Diego suppressed a sigh. Victoria had no idea how much he wanted her and that he dreamed of kissing her. It took all his control to stay calm in her presence.

"Did I say something wrong, Diego?" Victoria asked, anxiously, when she saw his face.

"No, it's alright, Victoria," he assured her. "You can trust me, and I'm here for you." He held her tight again, relieved that she couldn't see his face as he tried to fathom the consequences of the situation. Victoria needed him now to act around her as a brother and he would be there for her, even if it strained his control to the limit. If he couldn't help her as Zorro, he would do so as Diego. It had been his idea to pay the bail for the farmers that had brought her into that situation.

"Thank you, Diego," she whispered, relieved.

"Why don't you take a break today and let your helpers take care of the tavern for a change?" Diego suggested. "Come with me to the hacienda. Nobody will bother you there."

Victoria shook her head. "I can't simply leave. There is too much to do, and the work distracts me."

"It's still early, there are no guests yet. We can go for a walk. It will relax you," Diego wanted to find something to help her and to distract her.

"I don't have much time," she hesitated. "I need to take care of the dishes." She grabbed a few dirty plates from the table and dropped them in the sink filled with water. "Ugh!" she exclaimed. She had forgotten that she was wearing long sleeves today, and now they were wet at the wrists and further up her arms from the water in the sink.

"Don't you want to change?" Diego asked when she ignored her wet sleeves. "It's not very comfortable."

"It's alright, it will dry quickly." Victoria rolled up her sleeves up to her elbows.

Diego stared at her bare arms. "What happened to your arms? They are red all over as if you tried to rub off the skin. Did you do that?"

Ashamed, she looked away. "I feel so dirty, so used. I wanted to get rid of the dirt where they touched me, but I couldn't get it off. I tried and I tried." She burst into tears again, wrapping her arms around herself. She reached for the neckline of her blouse, making sure it was properly in place, covering her up to the neck. Her gesture made him question why she was so intent on covering herself and a shocking image came to his mind.

"Does your neckline look the same?" he asked, horrified, as he imagined her trying to rub off the memories from her skin. Victoria didn't answer and turned her eyes to the ground.

Aghast, Diego looked at her. "Victoria, it wasn't your fault. Don't feel like this." Gently, he put his arms around her again, rocking her like a child.

"I don't know," she whispered. "I never felt so helpless. I should have tried to run, but they threatened cut my throat if I tried to escape. I was so afraid they'd kill me."

"You must believe me, Victoria. There was nothing you could do. They would have killed you! It wasn't your fault! All that matters is that you're safe now," he soothed her, simply holding her in his arms. Victoria relaxed a bit, leaning her forehead on his chest. "I'm sorry I couldn't do more. It was my fault you were in this situation at all. If I hadn't had that idea to bail out the farmers, they would never have taken you hostage." And as Zorro he had brought the bandits to prison in the first place, Diego added silently to himself.

"You did enough, Diego. You helped Zorro capturing the bandits by giving them guns without gunpowder and training your horse."

"Come with me for a walk in the woods. It will help you. At least it helps me when I'm troubled." Before she could object further, he went to the front door and put the closed sign on, locking the door. Motioning her outside, he did the same with the back door.

Victoria followed his lead as he walked with her into the woods that started right behind the mission. Occupied by her thoughts, Victoria didn't pay much attention to the uneven ground between the trees that was covered with roots, and she almost fell after she had stumbled twice already.

Not trying to touch her, Diego offered her his hand to steady her. Victoria stared at him for a moment as if she was evaluating again if she could trust him, but then she took the hand he offered. Diego closed his hand around hers, firmly and yet gently. Although she found her footing after a while, she made no attempts to retreat her hand again. Diego glanced at her curiously and surprised, but made no comments on it.

Walking silently side by side, holding hands, they both tried to cope with the situation. Victoria failed in her attempt to block out the events of the previous day from her mind, and her hands clenched to fists. Diego squeezed her hand in return, assuring her of his support while his own thoughts were in turmoil.

What Victoria had told him had shocked him deeply, and he felt helpless, seeing her in pain. To lift the mood he started to talk about the birds he spotted in the trees. Victoria listened, interested, grateful that he didn't ask her more questions and let her mind rest by distracting her with talk about birds and other things to see in the woods.

Mostly walking in silence, they made their way back to the tavern an hour later.

"Thank you, Diego," Victoria faced him, before they reached the tavern again. Only now she noticed that they had been holding hands the whole time. "You were right, the walk helped. But now, I must get back to work." Her face became somber again. "My helpers will be curious why I haven't opened yet."

"You're welcome, Victoria." Diego hugged her again, creating a grateful smile on her face. He wanted to hold her, caress and kiss her, but it would only scare her off at the moment, and he didn't want her to lose her trust in him.

"Will you be alright?" She nodded, though he didn't quite believe her. "Are you sure you don't want to come to the hacienda for a few days?"

"I can't run away, Diego," she sighed. "I have a tavern to maintain and the memories won't leave so easily. When I'm busy, I don't have to think." Talking about it, brought the tears back into her eyes. Diego quickly pulled out a handkerchief and handed it to her.

"Keep it, until I come back again later. You still owe me a coffee." His remark made her smile at him.

"You'll get your coffee whenever you want. I owe you much more than that for being here for me today, Diego."

"De nada. I'm glad that you confided in me, and I won't betray your trust." He almost reached out to kiss her hand, but he couldn't do that as Diego, and especially not now, when she was scared of any touch.

Z Z Z

Alejandro was surprised to see his son entering the hacienda before noon.

"Is something wrong, Diego?" he asked when he saw his face. "Why are up this early? That's quite unusual for you! Have you been to the pueblo already? I was planning to go there and check on Victoria."

"I have already done that. The kidnapping yesterday has afflicted her more than she made us believe. I don't think you should distress her more by asking her about it." Diego said firmly. "She made clear she would rather be left alone."

Astonished and worried, Alejandro looked at his son. "Maybe she wants to stay a few days at the hacienda?"

"I already asked her, and she refused. If you want to help her, just don't question her. It's difficult enough for her."

It was obvious that Diego knew more than he was willing to share. Alejandro looked at him questioningly.

"I'm sorry, Father, but I can't tell you more. Victoria talked to me, but I can't relay what she told me in confidence."

"Then I won't question you anymore. I trust your judgment concerning Victoria."


End file.
